GoKawiilOpenAI contractors reviewing hundreds of thousands of private ChatGPT conversations
According to a 404 Media report, OpenAI has hired hundreds of contract workers to read and evaluate user prompts, including messages containing sensitive personal details, as part of an internal effort called Project Lily. The reviewers rate and critique ChatGPT's responses to help engineers reduce sycophantic and overly human-like behavior in the chatbot, rather than to moderate content.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
Many users likely assume their conversations with ChatGPT are private, but this human review process means real people can see anonymized chats that still contain identifying details, location data, and personal disclosures. The effort is meant to curb behaviors linked to so-called AI psychosis and harmful sycophancy, but it raises fresh questions about consent and transparency around how AI companies handle the data users share, sometimes explicitly asking to keep private.
- OpenAI employs hundreds of contractors under 'Project Lily' to read and critique ChatGPT prompts and responses.
- The goal is to reduce anthropomorphizing and sycophantic tendencies linked to harmful user outcomes, not to moderate content.
- Reviewed chats are anonymized but can still include sensitive personal details, and many users are unaware humans read their conversations.
Source: futurism.com — Frank Landymore, 2026-09-17
Published there as: “OpenAI Has Hundreds of Workers Reading People’s Private Chats”
Read the original report → The summary and analysis above are GoKawiil's own, written from reporting by the source above. Facts and quotes belong to the original publisher.